Davis begins bonding process

FARMINGTON — A proposed expansion of the Davis Conference Center is one step closer.

The Davis County Board of Commissioners decided on Tuesday to start the process for issuing and selling sales-tax revenue bonds. County residents may comment on the proposal to Davis Clerk/Auditor Steve Rawlings or to the county commissioners until Aug. 15.

The Davis Conference Center in Layton is consistently booked, and a feasibility study completed earlier this year found the county would benefit from an expansion.

The county is qualified to issue up to $12 million in sales-tax revenue bonds at 6 percent interest for up to 31 years, but Rawlings says the county will likely need to issue only $9 million to $10 million to finance the expansion.

Because the county may follow the sales-tax-revenue-bond route, the interest rate at which the county borrows money through bonding will likely be lower than 5 percent, Rawlings said.

Jon Bronson, the county's agent with Zions Bank Public Finance, told commissioners the sales-tax revenue bonds will get a better rating than other types of bonds.

"It's a very nice financing tool," Bronson said.

County officials hope to use sales-tax revenue as collateral for the bonds and plan to make bond payments by using revenue from a recent increase in the county's hotel-room tax, scheduled to take effect in October.